Coming to a crosswalk near you: The Daytona 500

The world is full of many new inventions that have brought great efficiencies to all of our lifestyles: the Tivo/DVR, the iPOD, the spray salad dressing, Mr. Clean wall eraser, etc. Another new invention however, has caused me to look like an idiot and compromise my safety.

The count down crosswalk signal.

They are all over the place now - on the way to work and on the way home. True, I am all in favor of more information but it seems that all it does is cause you to frantically run across the street instead of focusing on the surrounding cars whizzing by. And now you have to make an all important judgement about when you are still close enough to make it across. Are you taunting the driving traffic when you see it down to 5, 4, 3.... and you still cross. Of course. We have all been in the car trying to make a left and have wanted to shout "Look lady, there are only 4 seconds left, if you don't vamoose I ain't getting across" (of course the window is up and no one can hear you). In the mornings, I tend to keep it cool and not rush. Afterall, who wants to rush to work? But in the afternoon, as soon as I get close enough to see the numbers (which is usually in front of a crowded bar, The Fourth Estate), I begin to think that I am running for the gold at Beijing 2008. With khaki pants, a jacket and a side satchel bag w/computer I end up looking like this weird waddling yuppie trying to get to the metro platform in time. I am sure the people in the bar think I am an idiot.

And my wife and I have a new type of communication as we walk home from the metro together up Wayne Avenue. It's usually walking having a conversation and then one of us interrupts "Are you running, are we staying, what do you want to do, GO GO GO!".

So all over the city, I guess all over the world, you now see people doing these frantic mini-dashes across crosswalks.......just to get to the next crosswalk where you have to do the same thing....